Ondo Court Helped A 16-Year-Old Secondary School Girl Who Was Forcefully Married To An Alhaji As His 9th Wife

An Family Court residing in Akure, Ondo State has nullified a forced marriage between Alhaji Yusuf Lateef and a 16-year old Secondary school girl.

According to report gathered by Reference Daily News reporter in the state, the court presided over by Justice Aderemi Adegoroye, directed the immediate return of the teenager to her family for proper care and education and warned the Alfa to stay away from her.

Alhaji Lateef had approached one of his members, Mr and Mrs Olasunkanmi, in 2019, when their daughter was 15 years old, and sought her hand in marriage. Despite the girl’s protest, her parents forced her to accept the proposal and a day was fixed for the marriage.

However, the girl, in connivance with her elder brother, Quadri, fled their Ore home on her wedding day and went to the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Akure, where she was sheltered and legal works began to stop the marriage.

The cleric and the girl’s parents were later arraigned at the Family Court for violated Part three of the 2007 Ondo State Child Rights Law. .

The court’s ruling was that the girl be returned to her parents and Alhaji Lateef be made to sign an undertaking to stay away from her as well as ensure no harm comes her way.

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